US Southern Command announced on Friday that it carried out a lethal kinetic strike on a suspected drug-trafficking vessel in the eastern Pacific, resulting in the deaths of two people, while one survived.
A video clip shared on X shows three individuals aboard the vessel before an explosion destroys it.
“At least two people were killed, while one survived,” the command said, adding that it immediately notified the US Coast Guard to initiate a search-and-rescue operation for the survivor.
SOUTHCOM also claimed intelligence inputs had confirmed that the twin-engine boat was transiting along “known narco-trafficking routes” and was “engaged in narco-trafficking operations”.
The latest boat strike by the US is the first this month, and since US forces captured Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, in ‘Operation Absolute Resolve’ on January 3, 2026.
Maduro and Flores were flown to New York to face federal charges, including narco-terrorism conspiracy and drug trafficking.
The strike brings the total known US operations against alleged drug vessels in the Caribbean and Eastern Pacific to 36 (on 37 vessels), with approximately 117-125 deaths reported since the campaign intensified in September 2025 under ‘Operation Southern Spear’.
Also Read: US strikes on Narco boats kill four in Eastern Pacific
The US Navy has maintained an enhanced presence in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific since early September last year with the stated objective of countering drug-trafficking routes used to supply illicit narcotics to the US mainland.
The last military strike by US forces on alleged narco boats took place in late December, when the Southern Command released a statement saying it carried out attacks on five alleged drug-carrying boats over two days, killing as many as eight people on board, while others jumped overboard.
The US Coast Guard searched for survivors but later suspended operations after failing to locate them.
Colombian President, Gustavo Petro, has repeatedly criticised the US “anti-drug cartel” campaign, labelling the attack an “act of tyranny”, and accusing the US of targeting innocent fishermen under the guise of combating drug trafficking.
In October 2025, Petro alleged that one bombed vessel carried Colombian citizens, a claim partially corroborated by unnamed US officials who confirmed Colombians were aboard at least one targeted boat. He demanded accountability and human rights investigations if Colombians were killed.
Several Colombian nationals, including fishermen, were reportedly killed in prior strikes, particularly those near Colombia’s Pacific coast or involving groups like the ELN.
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